Four people are in the hospital after a high school softball star's crazed ex-boyfriend stabbed her and her mother in frenzied broad daylight in front of a restaurant. He then attacked a bystander who got him away from her before slitting his own throat in a desperate suicide bid, police said.
Madison Schemitz, a 17-year-old student at Ponte Vedra High School, was having lunch with her mother Jackie Roge and a friend in the town on Saturday. The trio came across Schemitz's ex-boyfriend, Spencer Pearson, 18, a recent graduate of the school and a former football player. Moments later, Person launched a near-fatal attack on the Schemitz and her mother.
Near-Fatal Attack
According to investigators, the gruesome attack in broad daylight in upscale Ponte Vedra Beach near Jacksonville was only stopped after a brave Good Samaritan spotted the frenzied attack and stepped in.
Schemitz's friend, Casey Estep, who was also having lunch with the mother-daughter duo, told local reporters that Schemitz had recently broken up with the 18-year-old and that he had since threatened her with violence.
The constant threats over the past several months compelled Roge to even try and get a restraining order against Pearson.
Estep said Roge was one of her best friends. "She's like my soulmate as a sister, per se, as a friend," she told News4Jax.
It was Estep who first spotted Pearson.
"They were like, 'Oh, we've got to go.'" Estep told First Coast News of their startled reaction to Pearson's sudden appearance.
The group swiftly settled their bill and made their way to their car, when Pearson stopped them and started stabbing Schemitz and her mother.
Kennedy Armstrong, a 23-year-old bystander, was sitting in a parked vehicle nearby when he suddenly heard piercing screams. He turned in the direction of the sound and saw Pearson straddling Schemitz on the ground and stabbing her repeatedly.
Pearson was instantly thrown off the screaming, bloodied victim by Armstrong, who dashed in his direction.
Surviving a Deadly Attack
Armstrong immediately sprinted towards Pearson and knocked him off of the screaming and bloodied victim.
"You see two girls in trouble getting attacked by a guy, I would hope most people would do the same," Armstrong told First Coast News "Kudos to the mom. I think she's the real reason that girl is still alive."
However, Pearson then lunged at Armstrong and stabbed him in the arm, severing several of his tendons.
The attack came to an end after Pearson tried to commit suicide by slitting his own throat.
All four people were rushed to a nearby hospital. Schemitz, however, had major injuries to her spine and momentarily entered paralysis.
She has already had multiple surgeries, and her condition is still critical.
Two GoFundMe pages have already raised more than $80,000 to help Schemitz and her family with upcoming medical bills and other needs. "She is a sister to five siblings and she will have a long road to recovery as she is in critical condition at Memorial Hospital in Jacksonville," one of the accounts said of Schemitz.
Pearson's condition also remains critical following the horrific self-inflicted cut to the neck.
If Pearson survives, the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office said they would charge him with attempted murder.
Police have already launched an investigation.
